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Simisola, the 16th Inspector Wexford novel by Ruth Rendell, is at once a gripping mystery and an emotionally charged exploration of racism, sexual violence, and the urban ills that are infecting small, traditionally peaceful communities.
No one admitted to spotting the doctor's missing daughter—even after the murders began. Melanie Akande, eschewing privilege, had insisted on going to the jobsearch office to find employment. But between that office and the bus stop, she vanished. Inspector Wexford hoped someone would have noticed her, since the Akandes were among the few Africans living in Kingsmarkham. Instead, he had found a middle-aged white woman strangled in bed, and a mysterious black girl buried in a shallow grave.
Now Wexford, seeking connections among the three women, cast his baleful eye on the changes in once rural Sussex—from a Kuwaiti millionaire's Rolls-Royce to the growing slums and dismal hopelessness of unemployed youth. What he can't see among them is the shocking, blood-chilling motive to kill. And what he has yet to find is a doctor's missing child ...
"The events are put together so methodically and believably, while the drawing of character and setting is so exact, that the book seems at times like a contemporary Middlemarch with a murder mystery at the heart of it. The solution is truly astonishing yet as logical as the rest of this splendid, passionately fair-minded and deeply disturbing novel-in which Rendell surpasses even herself." —Publishers Weekly
"We're all racists," the gentle Wexford says in the early pages, and the novel goes on to prove him right. But all this, of course, is a contrivance, and the story suffers under the burden; it has little force, momentum, or focus. True, Rendell firing on only three cylinders is more impressive than many firing on all four, but this is still a disappointment." —Booklist
This information about Simisola was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Ruth Rendell was born February 17, 1930 in Essex, England. During her 50-year writing career she wrote over 60 novels, both under her own name and using her pseudonym, Barbara Vine.
Rendell was credited with bringing a social and psychological dimension to crime fiction, which led to considerable commercial and success and critical praise. Many of her books were were adapted for both movies and television, especially including the Inspector Wexford series.
Rendell was awarded three Edgars for best novel by the Mystery Writers of America, as well as the Grand Master Award. In England, the Crime Writers' Association honored her with two Gold Dagger awards for best novel, a Silver Dagger, and a Diamond Dagger for outstanding contribution to the genre. She lived in London.
Ruth ...
Name Pronunciation
Ruth Rendell: ren-DELL
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